


By Any Other Name

by NifflersNogtailsNargles



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Gen, Ginny Weasley Bashing, Grief/Mourning, Love Potion/Spell, Ron Weasley Bashing, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:55:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25981699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NifflersNogtailsNargles/pseuds/NifflersNogtailsNargles
Summary: March 26th, 2034. Great Britain has been taken over by a new Dark Lord and the future looks bleak. Rose knows that she has to do something. Maybe she's the only person who can. Armed with only an ancient ritual, a beat up time turner, and a very sneaky five year old girl, she makes the trip through time to stop the darkness before it ever even begins.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Harry Potter, Scorpius Malfoy/Rose Weasley
Comments: 17
Kudos: 77





	1. Already Gone

Chapter One: Already Gone

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter in any part, the characters and the HP universe all still belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. Last I checked. * sighs in disappointment ***

**A/N: So I saw this prompt in the Harmony &Co Prompts tumblr page and couldn't resist. Please let me know what you all think. Unbeta'd as always so any mistakes are purely my own. Also, the section in italics at the beginning of the second scene is a direct quote from GoF so therefore belongs to JKR.**

_Remember all the things we wanted **  
** Now all our memories, they're haunted **  
** We were always meant to say goodbye_

_-Kelly Clarkson_

**Undisclosed Location, Scotland, March 26 th 2034**

_Thirty-eight. Thirty-nine._ She counted the seconds silently, ignoring the sweat dripping from her brow as she held the delicate gold chain perfectly still over the boiling hot cauldron.

_Forty. Forty-one._ She tried to ignore the sound of muffled bangs as they drew ever closer. Twenty seconds. Just twenty more seconds and they'd be free. Her eyes fluttered closed as a tiny pair of hands tugged at her threadbare robes. _Forty-two. Forty-three._

“Mummy.” The voice was quiet, barely above a whisper. She was a clever little thing, just like her mother and grandmother before her. She had learned to detect and avoid danger very early on in life, and had something of a sixth sense for impending trouble. She was sneaky and resourceful, and at the moment she was very very afraid. She had never seen her father look so tense, and she'd seen the way her mother's hands had shaken as she'd carefully prepared the ingredients for the special potion.

“Not now darling, Mummy's busy. Come and see your old dad instead.” Tori thought that maybe Daddy was trying to use his happy voice, but it just came out sort of soft and wobbly and strange. She didn't like it at all, but still, he looked like he might need a cuddle, so she went to him.

Rose watched her daughter cross the room from the corner of her eye, still counting. _Forty-nine. Fifty._ The sounds were unbearably loud now. She felt the tears start to fall as she heard her husband whisper quiet words of comfort to the small blonde child. It made her heart break to see the pair of them together. With her right there in his arms, it was impossible to mistake them as anything other than father and daughter. _Fifty-one._

“Rosie.”

“Not now. Just nine more seconds.”

“Rosie they're here. I know you felt the wards break.”

“It's okay. It's fine I just need five more seconds.” _Fifty-five._

She heard him swallow hard before continuing. “And then how long to perform the ritual?”

“A minute.” she whispered, frantically counting down the last few seconds in her head. _Fifty-nine. SIXTY. Yes! She'd done it. They were free, now they could-_

“One minute. I can give you that.”

She froze, all earlier happiness vanished in an instant. “Scorpius, no. You're coming with us. We have to go together, all of us. We have a plan, you can't just-”

The rest of her sentence hung unfinished in the air as he swooped down upon her, stealing her very breath with a bruising kiss. She responded instantly, running her fingers through his matted hair as their tears mingled, forging woeful paths down dirt-stained cheeks. The kiss was brief. A second between seconds filled with a million unfulfilled promises. It tasted bittersweet on her tongue and left her with a heavy ball of lead in her stomach.

He pulled back, a wistful half-smile softening the sharp angles of his face. “You and your plans Rose. When do they ever work out?.”

She laughed through tears as she reached out for her daughter, gathering the girl up in her arms tightly.

“Maybe one day.” She tried to smile, but it felt wrong on her face. Instead, she buried her hair in Astoria's wild blonde curls, trying to draw comfort and strength from the little heartbeat thumping against her.

“Keep dreaming Potter.”

“That's Malfoy to you.” He closed his eyes, lost for a moment in fond memories. He released a single tear of his own as he reached out one hand to cup her face.

“We'll see each other again.” He sounded so sure, she almost believed him.

“Where are you going Daddy?” He flinched at the sound of her voice, as though the thought of leaving her was physically painful.

“Nowhere sweetheart. You and Mummy are just going away on a little trip.”

“Oh, they are, are they? How exciting.”

Rose visibly stiffened, trying to carefully place the small necklace in her left pocket without being noticed.

“Hi Uncle Hugo. We're going on a trip.” Tori smiled sweetly. She knew that Uncle Hugo was not a nice man, but she thought that maybe if she kept him talking, Mummy could get that minute she'd asked Daddy for.

“I heard.” The redhead glared at the child, silently daring her to speak out of turn again. He _despised_ children.

“As did I.” Tori buried her head into her mother's shoulder at the sound of the next voice. It was Uncle Albus. He was _evil_. Even Aunt Luna used to say so, before she died, and Aunt Luna was nice to everyone.

“Albus, what a pleasant surprise.”

“I think you'll find that the proper form of address is _My Lord._ ” Rose snorted in derision.

“I still remember you running around the garden of the Burrow in naught but Granny Molly's heels. If you think I'm going to go around calling you _My Lord_ after that, you're sorely mistaken.”

Rage flashed behind his usually flat green eyes.

“Very droll, sister mine. But tell me, will you find it so amusing when your little brat lies dead on the floor in front of you?”

Rose's grip on her daughter tightened as the girl nestled her head even further into the crook of her mother's neck.

“Piss off, Potter. Quit picking fights with witches for once in your miserable life. Stand up and fight like a man.” And so the duel began, their spells illuminating the air. Lights flashed violent reds and angry purples as Scorpius ducked and dodged his way through the assault, taking on both wizards at once.

Rose quickly brushed aside the part of her that bristled at his words. She knew what he was doing. He was giving her that minute. One last promise fulfilled. One last chance to break her heart by showing her exactly what kind of a man he was. One final chance to give his wife and daughter the life they deserved.

_Well, I had better make it count then._ Determined, she whispered complex incantations under her breath. She spoke so quickly it sounded like an ancient chant, or an old prayer for mercy spoken so many times she could recite it by heart. Wandlessly, she sliced a small cut in her left thumb before doing the same for her daughter. Begging the girl with her eyes to stay silent, she pressed their thumbs together, allowing the blood to mix. The five year old bit her lip as she felt tears well up in her eyes. She knew that she had to stay quiet, so she did, but it hurt _so much._

“Fight like a man, hmm. Surely this isn't what you meant Malfoy? Pathetic. _Crucio._ ” Rose screwed her eyes up tight as the sound of her husbands screams rent the air. Unable to bear it any longer, Astoria exploded.

“Stop it, stop it, stop it! Stop hurting my Daddy!” She screeched at the top of her lungs, louder than she ever had in her life. There was a sudden _whoosh_ of magical energy as the wizard's wands were ripped from their hands. Hugo stared for a second, dumbfounded as Albus hissed angrily. Right there, on his left cheek, was a deep red gash.

“That's my girl.” Scorpius smiled then. It was a horrible, pained expression, his teeth stained with blood as he lay twitching on the floor.

“You insolent little bitch!.” Albus raised his hand above his head , summoning the wand back to his person. “No-one takes my wand from me and lives to tell the tale.” Rose locked eyes with her husband and nodded slightly. She was ready. It was time.

'I love you' she mouthed, reaching her bloodied thumb into her pocket and pressing it down hard on the delicate spindle. The magic built slowly, far more slowly than she had expected. Heat crackled though the room, alerting Albus to the presence of magic. Just as Rose started to feel herself grow lighter, less substantial, she found him standing right in front of her. Wand in hand.

“What are you doing? _Avada Kedavra.”_

“No!”

The last thing Rose saw before her world went black was the cold, dead eyes of Scorpius Malfoy, smiling as he lay at her brother's feet.

**Seventh Floor Corridor, Hogwarts, Scotland, 25 th December 1994**

_"Well, if you don't like it, you know what the solution is, don't you?" yelled Hermione; her hair was coming down out of its elegant bun now, and her face was screwed up in anger.  
  
"Oh yeah?" Ron yelled back. "What's that?"  
  
"Next time there's a ball, ask me before someone else does, and not as – Oh my God!” _

Rose blinked her eyes opened slowly, not quite able to place the voices. Although they did sound vaguely familiar to her.

“ _Quick Ron, fetch Madame Pomfrey. Harry you go and get Dumbledore, I'll stay with them.”_

The hands on her head felt cool and comforting. She felt as though she had been in this exact same position many times before. She breathed in the soft lilac scent that so reminder her of her mother.

_Her mother?!_ She started to hyperventilate as it all came back to her in flashes. The ritual. A duel. Bright flashes of light. A dull thud as Scorpius' body hit the floor.

_Oh my god, Scorpius._ She let out a low keening sound, letting grief take over her entire body.

She wailed and cried and scratched at her face. She'd lost him. He was _gone._ Her husband, Tori's father, was dead.

“Shhh.. It'll be okay. I'm so sorry. Help is on the way.” The girls voice was calm and reassuring as she pulled Rose's hands away from her face, firmly pinning them by her sides to prevent her from doing any further damage to herself.

“It's not okay. It'll never be okay again.” Her voice was dull now, lifeless, as though all the fight had gone out of her in an instant.

“Maybe not.” The girl agreed, slowly stroking the back of her hand with her thumb. “But that little girl over there looks very scared, and very alone. She needs someone to hold her, and it looks like she might belong to you. That's got to be worth something, at least?”

“Tori,” she croaked, nodding. “Let go of my arms. Bring her to me. Please.”

The girl stared at her for a few moments, searching. She must have found whatever it was she was looking for though, because no sooner than she had released Rose's arms, she had placed Tori in them.

“Mummy. What happened? Is Daddy okay?” She found herself unable to answer, so instead she chose to sit up, still cradling the girl in her arms as she stared straight ahead.

“It appears, my boy, that you did not exaggerate when you said that it was an emergency.”

“No sir.” Rose lifted her eyes at the sound of the voice . As she looked up she found herself met with a horrifyingly familiar pair of bright green eyes.

“Get away from me!” She screamed, scrambling around on the floor in search of her wand.

“Tori. Get behind me!” Her eyes were wild, terrified. “What did you do with my wand? Give it back to me!”

She advanced on the girl menacingly. She had just lost her husband, she wasn't about to let him take her daughter too. The girl looked over to the two men at the other side of the corridor, panicked.

“I don't have it!” She insisted.

“Liar!” Rose roared, charging the girl at full speed until, suddenly, the world grew black once more.

“What on Earth is going on here?” Madame Pomfrey gasped at the scene she had just walked in on.

“That,” Dumbledore replied , “appears to be the question.” None of the three teenagers missed his solemn tone, or the absence of his signature twinkle.

“Poppy, might I suggest you take our visitors to the hospital wing. Hopefully more answers will be forthcoming in the morning.”

**A/N: SO there it is, the first chapter done. Hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**Til next time,**

**SJ**


	2. Let it Fade Away

Chapter Two: Let it Fade Away

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter in any part, the characters and the HP universe all still belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. Last I checked. * sighs in disappointment ***

**A/N: Aaaaaand here's number two. Wow you guys, the response to the first chapter has been amazing and I just want to take a moment to say thank you all for your support and encouragement. Just a quick note to let you know that the story will jump between the present and Rose's past (i.e. the future) so pay close attention to the dates.**

_And they were young and independent,_

_and they thought they had it planned  
Should have known right from the start _

_you can't predict the end_

_-Panic! At the Disco_

**Hogwarts Infirmary, Hogwarts, Scotland, 25 th December 1994**

Hermione Granger was a witch of many talents, she was clever, cool under pressure, and after four years being Harry Potter's best friend she considered herself to be pretty near unshockable. Apparently though, even she had her limits. She barely suppressed the urge to do something foolish like pinch herself as she took in the sight before her. A tiny, extremely blonde child had just kicked the great Albus Dumbledore in the shin!

“Don't hurt my Mummy! Wake her up. Immediately!”

_Immediately?_ For such a young girl, her vocabulary was impressive. The girl jumped up and grabbed the headmaster by his beard, pulling it down until she could force him to meet her eyes.

“You make her wake up or I'll make _you_ go to sleep!”

Hermione locked eyes with Harry. His expression mirrored her own perfectly, torn between confusion and amusement. Gently, Dumbledore prised her hands away, and with a grace belying his age knelt down before her.

“Be calm child. You're mother is not hurt, only stunned.”

The girl cocked her head as she eyed the older man with obvious distrust. “Why did you stun her?”

Hermione frowned. The guarded expression looked wrong on a child so young. And the mother, she had looked so manic, so haunted. What had _happened_ to these people? She looked over at Ron, expecting to see the same concern she felt. Instead, his face was twisted and red, disgust plain on his face. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. Despite his many, _many,_ flaws, Ron was usually a sympathetic person. She stared at him intently, searching for answers. She was so focused that she barely heard Dumbledore's next words.

“Your mother seems to have experienced a terrible shock. She was very upset and we just needed to let her rest for a little while. Now, do you think you could tell me your name?”

The girl still appeared dubious, but must have decided that it was safe enough for now.

“My name is Tori.”

Dumbledore smiled gently at the girl before rising. “Alright Tori. You see this girl here?”

Tori nodded as he gestured towards Hermione. “This here is Hermione. If you'll allow it, she can take you down to the infirmary while Harry and I go ahead with your mother. Mr. Weasley, if you would be so kind as to return to your dormitory.” Ron, uncharacteristically silent until now, opened his mouth to protest but found himself cut off.

“No need to worry, I'm sure your friends will spare no detail upon their return.” His tone was light, but final. Unwilling to argue with the headmaster, Ron skulked away, clearly unhappy. Hermione shook her head in exasperation. She didn't know what was wrong with Ron this year. It seemed as though the boy were looking for any excuse to take offence. Vowing to get to the bottom of it at a later time, she approached Tori and offered her hand for the girl to take. Hesitantly, she accepted.

The pair walked together in silence, the younger of the two taking in her surroundings with something akin to wonder. Hermione grinned at the sight. She remembered wearing a similar expression for almost her entire first year. Life-threatening situations aside, the castle truly was magnificent.

“Is this Hogwarts?” Tori asked in a small voice.

“Yes, it is. You've heard of it?” Hermione asked with a smile.

Tori appeared to consider her reply before answering. “Yes. I haven't been here before though. It's big.”

“It is,” Hermione agreed. “But don't worry, you'll find your way around in no time. It just takes a little bit of getting used to.” Truthfully, she had no idea if the girl would be in the castle long enough _to_ get used to it, but it seemed like a comforting thing to say.

They continued their journey in companionable quiet and before long they had found their way to the hospital wing. When they arrived, they found Madame Pomfrey already attending to the unconscious woman, exchanging quiet words with the headmaster as she did so.

“Signs of malnutrition.... improperly healed breaks... signs of torture. Merlin Albus, what happened to this poor woman?”

Harry approached Hermione looking distraught. “Hermione, Madame Pomfrey said you should take the little girl to her office while she sees to her mother.”

The girl looked between the pair, eyes shining with tears. “I want to stay with Mummy. I can stay with her, can't I Hermione?” She pleaded silently with the older girl, gripping her hand tightly.

Hermione stared at the girl helplessly. She didn't know what to say. Luckily, it seemed like Harry was on the case. He knelt down to meet her eyes.

“Tori. Is it okay if I call you Tori?” she nodded tearfully. “Thank you Tori. You seem like a clever girl, so I know you can see that your mum is very poorly at the minute.” Hermione glared at the boy. How could her knowing that possibly help?

“But what you _don't_ know, is that Madame Pomfrey is the best healer in the world.”

Tori snorted disbelievingly. “In the _world_?”

Harry continued without blinking. “In the whole world. She's healed me up more times than I can count. She's going to have your mum fixed up for you in no time, but to do that she needs to concentrate. Do you understand?”

Unhappy, but seeming to understand, she conceded. “Okay. I understand. Will you stay in the office with me Hermione?”

Hermione nodded kindly. “Of course I will. Harry will too, won't you?”

Harry stared at her incredulously. “I will?” She shot him a sharp look, causing him to back track instantly. “I mean, sure I will. Absolutely!”

All of a sudden, the girl's tears vanished without a trace. She gifted them with a beaming smile, satisfaction rolling off of her in waves. “Great. Do you think there might be sweets in the office? I haven't had any sweets in _ages._ ”

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, flabbergasted. Either this child was singularly resilient, or they'd just been played. Either way, they moved as a group towards the small private office at the back of the hospital wing, apparently on the hunt for sweets.

Meanwhile, Madame Pomfrey was hard at work. She broke and re-mended bones, rubbed salve on bruises and mentally created a potions regiment for the emaciated witch before her. Albus Dumbledore observed the scene with interest. No stranger to odd occurrences, even he was intrigued by the events of the past few hours. Intrigued, and more than a little concerned. Undoubtedly, the woman and her daughter had suffered greatly. But to what end? His brow wrinkled as he looked on at the young woman. Even in sleep, her face was pained. Her hands twitched and her legs flailed, as though she were having a nightmare.

**Hogwarts Infirmary, Hogwarts, Scotland, 17 th March 2023**

“ _Miss Weasley-”_

“ _Potter.” She scowled at the young healer. No matter how many times she corrected the man he insisted on addressing her by her bastard step-father's name. The man gave a condescending smile before continuing._

“ _Yes. Well. Clearly you didn't obtain these injuries by accident. If someone has done this to you, you need to let me know. I assure you, no-one will ever know that it came from you.”_

_Rose snorted._ Yeah, right.

“ _I told you, I tripped and fell down the stairs!” The man's smile vanished and his face grew pinched._

“ _As you say then. I'll go and get the Skele-grow.”_

“ _Finally.” Rose grumbled. It had only taken twenty minutes of questioning. Her leg was throbbing._

_The dark-skinned girl beside her rolled her eyes heavily. “Pratt by name, prat by nature, eh?”_

_Rose giggled through the pain. Trust Lily to make jokes at a time like this. Lily Potter, although not related to her by blood, was the closest thing to a sister Rose had. When the truth of their respective parentages had come out two years earlier the girls had leaned on each other for strength. Although, it had definitely been more of a shock to Rose than it had to Lily. Ginny Potter's affair with Dean Thomas had been something of an open secret within the family for many a year. That he was Lily's father had been obvious to everyone except Harry, who had been so dosed up on love potions that he would have believed the sky was purple if Ginny had been the one to tell him so._

“ _Never a truer word spoken Potter.” A smug, familiar voice alerted Rose to the presence of Scorpius Malfoy. Of_ course _he would be here right now._

“ _What do you want, Malfoy?” Lily asked hotly. Despite the boy's burgeoning relationship with her cousin, Lily still hadn't warmed to him._

“ _Lily, hush.” Rose chided, happy to see her sort-of boyfriend. “Hi Scorpius.”_

“ _Alright love?” He approached the bed and brushed his lips against her forehead. “Have you been causing trouble again?”_

_She grinned. “Always.”_

“ _That's my girl.” He winked at her before conjuring a soft armchair to sit on._

“ _You two are revolting.” Lily wrinkled her nose in disgust._

_Scorpius laughed just as Healer Pratt returned with the Skele-grow, handing it to her with a glare. She shot him her most saccharine smile before tossing the dose back in a single gulp without flinching. The man huffed and stalked off. The second he was out of their sight, Rose quickly raised a silencing charm as she started to cough and splutter violently._

“ _Bleugh. Talk about revolting.” She shivered as she fought not to be sick._ Honestly, how had no-one ever found a way to make this stuff taste better?

“ _Brilliant, Rosie!” Lily laughed. “Did you see his face?”_

“ _Yes, yes, very funny. We all know Rose is brilliant” Scorpius said dismissively. “But we need to talk about Albus, The evil git is getting worse.” Rose grimaced. He was right, they had all been avoiding the issue for too long._

“ _I know. Did you hear about what he and Hugo did to Lisette Carmichael last week.”_

_Lily sighed sadly. “I did. Poor girl will be out the rest of the year now. Not that they can prove it was them.”_

“ _No, they've got too many little flunkies ready to provide them with an alibi.” Scorpius' voice was laced with disgust._

“ _Why didn't you tell Pratt that it was Albus' tripping jinx that sent you down the stairs?” Lily asked quietly. He might be her brother, but even she couldn't deny that he deserved punishment._

“ _Use your head Lily.” Rose snapped. “It's just his word against mines, and this way no-one will suspect me when I retaliate.”_

“ _Retaliate?” Lily said blankly._

“ _Obviously” she raised a single eyebrow as she spoke. “Part of the reason he gets away with it all is because no-one ever stands up to him.”_

“ _Except you” shot Scorpius wryly._

“ _Except_ us _” she corrected. “Anyway, the point is, if people see that he can be beat, that not everyone is scared to stand up to him, then maybe they'll be brave enough to do it themselves.”_

“ _My brave little Gryffindor.” Scorpius teased, although his eyes shone with pride._

“ _Takes one to know one.” She shot back, her eyes lingering on his._

“ _Sorry to interrupt whatever little moment this is you two are having,” interjected Lily, not sounding sorry at all. “But what about the younger years? I was thinking that we should set up a buddy system of a sorts. Make a rota so that an older student can walk them between classes.”_

“ _Good thinking.” Rose agreed with a smile. “If the teachers aren't doing anything to protect us, that's fine, we'll do it ourselves.”_

_Lost thoughts of their own private rebellion, Rose hadn't noticed Scorpius getting out of his chair. Without notice, he grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her squarely on the mouth._

“ _I bloody love you Rose Potter.”_

_She stared at him, dazed. “Oh.”_

_Unable to help herself, Lily burst into a fit of giggles._

**Hogwarts Infirmary, Hogwarts, Scotland, 26 th December 1994**

Rose woke slowly, face wet with tears as she emerged from a dream of happier times. Lily, _gone._ Scorpius, _gone._ Her parents, her friends, everyone she loved, _gone._ It was just her and Tori now, alone in the world. She sighed heavily as she turned her head to the left, hoping to find a glass of water to soothe her raw throat.

She was surprised to find a fifteen year old version of her mother sound asleep on the armchair by her bed. She was even more surprised to find her five year old daughter curled up asleep on the girl's lap. It was a scene so familiar that it made her heart ache. She could almost see it, if the girl's face were only a little more lined, her hair just a little bit shorter and streaked with grey. Her mother had remained an uncommonly beautiful witch until the end. She stifled a sob.

She sat in her misery, contemplating. She thought and she ruminated and she considered until finally she felt a spark of hope. She was here, wasn't she? She had made it. That meant that nothing from her past had happened yet. Nothing was set in stone.

That, after all, was why she had journeyed here in the first place. She smiled slightly at the still sleeping pair before settling back down to rest. She would need it for what was to come.

**A/N: And there it is guys, chapter two. Let me know what you guys thought. As always, I am working without a beta, so apologies in advance for any mistakes.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Til next time,**

**SJ**


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